Boots announces 300 store
closures with some sites
axed next week.
22:06, Fri, Sep 29, 2023. Express.
Saturday, September 30, 2023
More than ...
... 63,000 visits to this site in September, with a day still to go. 😀
Blessings to all my readers whether they like or loathe this Blog.
Violence Against Christians In India Is Increasing.
Persecution in India has increased dramatically since last year.
The statue of Jesus Christ at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Se Cathedral in Old Goa.(Photo: Getty/iStock)
Since January of this year, 525 violent incidents against Christians have been documented in 23 different states in India, according to United Christian Forum (UCF).
Compared to the total of 505 instances for the prior year, it is much higher.
According to a statement issued on September 7 by UCF, June had the most incidents—89—against Christians.
UCF found that the number of violent occurrences peaked in July at 80, while it was at its lowest in May at 47.
There are 13 areas across the nation where it is now unsafe to practise Christianity, says UCF. Bastar and Kondagaon in Chhattisgarh, where there have been 51 and 14 acts of violence against Christians, respectively, top the list. Most frequently, Christians are the targets of the state's anti-conversion law.
Close to 520 Christians have been detained across the nation under the anti-conversion statute so far this year, the UCF statement noted.
With 211 assaults, Uttar Pradesh recorded the most attacks, followed by Chhattisgarh and Haryana. CT.
Vatican.
Vatican brings its message for peace in Ukraine to Beijing.
The meeting with Chinese officials is the latest step in Pope Francis' appeals for peace in Ukraine. CT.
Yes, Andrea, Yes!
Church of England called to be faithful after Times survey
(Photo: Getty/iStock)Church of England clergy who have "lost confidence" in the Bible and biblical ethics should resign or be removed, the head of Christian Concern has said.
Andrea Williams was responding to a survey of CofE priests by The Times that found over half (53%) support priests being allowed to conduct same-sex weddings if they wish. Just under half (49%) said they would personally be prepared to conduct them if rules were changed to permit them.
A majority (59%) said they plan to offer blessings to same-sex couples after proposals were backed by the General Synod in February.
The study also revealed widespread support for a change to the Church's current opposition to premarital sex (62%). Only around a third (34.6%) said the teaching should remain unchanged.
Nearly two thirds (64.5%) said that the Church should change its teaching that "homosexual practice is incompatible with scripture", and a similar proportion (63.3%) supported allowing gay priests to enter into civil partnerships.
Responding to the results of the study, Mrs Williams said the Church of England needed an "influx" of leaders committed to the Bible.
She warned that mirroring liberalising trends in society would lead the Church of England down a "road to extinction" as she called on the Church to be a voice for life-long heterosexual marriage.
Mrs Williams cited a recent study by Christian Concern which found that 61% of Church of England churches with the largest youth groups were those that supported the Church's historic doctrine on heterosexual marriage.
"To survive and thrive the Church of England needs leadership that believes the Bible and puts it into practice," she said.
"The Christian gospel has always offered a radically distinct, challenging and life-giving vision to society. Simply aping the current values of the culture around us is the road to extinction for the Church of England.
"Church leaders that have lost confidence in the Bible and the beauty of God's ethical teaching should resign or be removed.
"What the Church of England needs is an influx of leaders that believe that the gospel of Jesus remains the best news for society and who are able to present it and practice it in today's world."
She continued, "If the church wants to grow, attract youth, and remain relevant in society it needs to advocate for Biblical teaching on marriage and sexual ethics.
"The Church should not be adjusting its teaching to follow the culture or society, but proclaiming the benefits for society and individuals of life-long heterosexual marriage and reserving sexual expression for marriage."
Speaking to Premier Christian News about the survey, Anglican evangelical Dr Ian Paul suggested the problem lay with senior leaders.
"I think the Church of England is in a real mess because for many years, despite the fact that clergy stand up and make a public vow ... those responsible for training and ordaining the clergy simply don't hold them to account," he said.
"We are unable to say anything coherent to our culture as a Church ... because within the clergy, we don't agree on anything. We even have bishops who disagree with the doctrine of the Church."
He added, "Somebody once said 'A house divided against itself cannot stand', and unless we see some big changes in the church - unless we actually say we're going to take the doctrine of the Church seriously - I do think we're fatally wounded." CT.
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Thanks, Michael.
The Left’s outrage over Suella Braverman’s speech is pure hypocrisy
Her comments on multiculturalism were met with fury, but I don’t recall such outrage when Angela Merkel said the same thing in 2010
MICHAEL DEACON27 September 2023 • DT.
Multiculturalism has failed. After Suella Braverman said these words during her speech in the US this week, British liberals erupted in scandalised outrage. Personally, though, I find their fury puzzling. This is because, as the Home Secretary had made perfectly clear, she’s not the first major politician to make this comment. In fact, she was expressly quoting one politician in particular: Angela Merkel.
That’s right. The former chancellor of Germany – and longstanding darling of British liberals. The woman they revered as a voice of decency and reason. The woman who, in their eyes, made our own leaders look like cheap, nasty populists.
Anyway, back in 2010, this paragon of centrist virtue gave a speech declaring that multiculturalism had failed. Those very words. Well, their German equivalents, at least. The speech was widely reported over here. So how did British liberals react?
Oddly enough, they didn’t seem all that bothered. A columnist in The Guardian politely disputed Merkel’s conclusion. An editorial in The Independent said she was being “too hard on her country”. But that was pretty much it. There was no raging horror. Liberal pundits did not unite to denounce Merkel as a dangerous fascist.
Of course, a mere five years later, Merkel threw open Germany’s borders to a million asylum seekers, so perhaps British liberals feel she’s atoned for her previous sin. But that still doesn’t explain why they seem so much angrier with Braverman in 2023 than they were with Merkel in 2010. So what can the reason be?
Do they perhaps consider it worse when a non-white person criticises multiculturalism? Do they believe that non-white people should automatically support open borders? Do they think that, as Braverman is the daughter of immigrants, it’s rude of her to complain, and she should just shut up and be grateful?
No, they can’t possibly think that. After all, that would be racist.
In which case, could their anger be due to a simple misunderstanding? The trouble with the word “multiculturalism” is that it gets used to mean two very different things. When liberals use it, they mean communities all mixing happily together. When conservatives like Braverman use it, however, they tend to mean the opposite: communities living separately, and failing (or even refusing) to integrate.
Then again, Braverman’s critics must know that’s what she meant – because she spelt it out in the plainest English. “Multiculturalism,” she said, “makes no demands of the incomer to integrate. It has failed because it allowed people to come to our society and live parallel lives in it.”
As it happens, I don’t agree with Braverman’s speech. I think that, for the most part, Britain is remarkably well integrated. And I think she was wrong to suggest that “simply being gay and fearful of discrimination in your country of origin” is not reason enough to qualify for asylum.
Even so, I don’t think this entirely accounts for the sheer blistering fury with which her speech has been received. At heart, I suspect, the real reason for all this liberal outrage is as follows.
Braverman used her speech to pose some simple but awkward questions. If, as predicted, mass migration to the West continues to accelerate, how will we build sufficient housing? Or sufficient schools and hospitals? And if we can’t build them fast enough – what will happen?
Such questions are extremely difficult to answer. Much easier to dismiss them out of hand as merely hateful and racist – so that you don’t have to think about them.
Thanks, Nana.
NANA AKUA: Suella Braverman is right - new arrivals must embrace the British way of life as my family did
By NANA AKUA
Blogger: from childhood, throughout my teens and onto and beyond university, I generally supported the call for an integrated society.
An integrated society meant that we were all British and newcomers could and should be too.
That is not to say that the newcomers should ever abandon their personal history - and indeed were wholly free celebrate it. This applied as much to Poles and Caribbean peoples as it had done to the Jewish communities who had been in our cities for centuries.
It helped ensure that the status quo was not damaged. Multicultural is not wrong in and of itself. It did however, morph into a stagnant, malicious and divisive new force - seemingly calculated to undermine the indigenous people of these islands.
This follow-up was then reinforced via the weasel word, diversity. This was designed to sideline Englishness, Scottishness etc.
Diversity is a gnawing, wolf in sheep's clothing - an homogeneity made to appeal to liberal Christians, leftists and the terminally simple alike.
It has an added bonus for those Trotskyite and religious cultures who may wish to supplant our own in that we move a step closer to the Orwellian world which they see as their next step.
Two Key Thoughts.
John Jameson UK, Salisbury, United Kingdom. Mail.
Britain produces just 0.3% of the world's carbon emissions and we are on the brink of mass power cuts. This push for net zero carbon is madness.
Friday, September 29, 2023
Our Messiah Is Omnipresent.
The omnipresence of Christ.
(Photo: Getty/iStock)The biblical proclamation in Matthew 18:20, where Jesus assures, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there among them," beckons us to delve into the depths of the divine mystery of Christ's omnipresence. This concept, though challenging to fathom, invites us to explore how Christ can be present in multiple places at once.
In seeking to understand this, it is crucial to recognise that Christ's presence is not confined to His physical form. Rather, it encompasses the manifestation of His boundless love and divine power. This presence transcends the limitations of time and space, permeating the hearts of those who earnestly seek Him.
The omnipotence of God allows Him to operate beyond human comprehension. He possesses the capacity to exist simultaneously in myriad locations. This transcendence even extends to the notion that He can, in a manner beyond our understanding, divide His consciousness, ensuring His omnipresence is experienced by His faithful.
Throughout the Bible, we encounter instances where God's presence is felt in diverse locations and situations. The burning bush that spoke to Moses, the pillar of cloud and fire that guided the Israelites, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit are all powerful demonstrations of the multifaceted nature of God's presence.
Moreover, the omnipresence of Christ points to a profound spiritual truth - the mystical union between the divine and humanity.
Through faith and devotion, we become vessels through which Christ's presence is made manifest in the world. This union transcends physical proximity, connecting us to a reality that surpasses the tangible.
Embracing the omnipresence of Christ challenges conventional notions of space and time. It calls us to move beyond the limitations of our earthly understanding and to open ourselves to the boundless mysteries of God's presence. In doing so, we find solace, strength, and purpose in knowing that Christ is with us, not only in body but in spirit, wherever we gather in His name.
In our pursuit of this truth, we find comfort and assurance, knowing that wherever we gather in His name, He is there among us, weaving His presence through the fabric of our lives.
This contemplation leads us on a journey of deeper communion with the divine, where we discover that Christ's presence is an ever-present reality that transcends our understanding, anchoring us in His unending love and grace.
Duncan Williams is outreach director for the Christian Free Press and has worked for Son Christian Media here in the UK and Recovery Network Radio in the United States. He is an ordained minister and a long-term member of Christians in Media. He provides content and syndicated news for regional publisher www.tindlenews.co.uk
Keith and Kristyn.
At Sing! Global, a faithful pushback to the spread of megachurch praise music.
Keith and Kristyn Getty's hymn conference brings Christians together to sing tunes from historic hymnals, from Celtic traditions and new creations — and to share a common love and culture of sacred
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I Consider The RSPB Part of The Problem Where, Especially, Songbirds Are Concerned.
One in six species in the UK are on the brink of extinction with nearly half of bird species dying out, new report claims.
- UK has seen an average decline of 19 per cent across all species since 1970
Britain is facing a 'sobering' decline in its wildlife with almost one in five species at risk of extinction, according to the latest State Of Nature report.
The report found creatures ranging from birds to mice had seen major losses over the past 50 years, as well as their natural habitats and fauna.
Nearly half of bird species are threatened while almost a third of amphibians, reptiles, fungi and lichen and a quarter of animals are at risk of vanishing.
Over half of flowering plant species no longer grow where they used to, with climate change and intensive farming being the biggest reasons why the UK has seen an average decline of all living species of 19 per cent since monitoring began in 1970.
Even before then, UK wildlife had been depleted by centuries of habitat destruction, unsustainable farming practices and persecution.
The decline of bees and other pollinators damages human food production
Some species, such as dragonflies, have improved thanks to rivers being cleaner (PA)
It means more than half of the UK's plant, fungal and animal life has been killed off.
Professor Richard Gregory, the RSPB's head of monitoring conservation science, said: 'The sobering message is that the state of UK nature and the wider environment, based upon the indices that we've got, continues to decline and degrade.
'At the same time, we've never actually had such a good understanding of the state of nature in the United Kingdom and we've never had such a good understanding of how we might fix it.'
Led by the RSPB and backed by over 60 research and conservation organisations, the State Of Nature report relied on thousands of volunteers recording sightings of various species across the UK, its crown dependencies and overseas territories.
Blogger: free reign has been granted to: invasive creatures like grey squirrels, edible dormice, the crow family, gulls which have abandoned the coast and rats. (Incidentally, we also have far too many pet cats - I dunno what we can do about them.) Those organisations which complain of lost and damaged habitats are, of course, correct - but if they fail to advocate culls of creatures which are butchering our songbirds they form a huge part of the problem.
I Applaud Nana Akua For Expressing My Own Beliefs With Great Precision.
When I heard Suella Braverman's speech this week at the American Enterprise Institute think tank in Washington, this memory came flooding back.
The Home Secretary warned that uncontrolled immigration, inadequate integration and the failed, misguided dogma of multiculturalism has proved to be a toxic combination for many European countries.
'Multiculturalism makes no demands of the incomer to integrate,' she added. 'It has failed because it allowed people to come to our society and live parallel lives in it.'
Unsurprisingly, her speech has sparked fury among the usual suspects - the liberal Lefties for whom 'multiculturalism' has long been a fashionable creed.
NANA AKUA: It suddenly became clear to me where my home really was
Mrs Braverman has been accused of 'dogwhistle' racism by those who point out that her parents were ethic Indian immigrants from Mauritius and Kenya and that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's parents also came to this country from East Africa. Surely, they say, both their life stories are triumphs of multicultural Britain.
This ill-informed opprobrium shows just how little the champions of multiculturalism understand of the cause they promote.
Yes, Britain is multicultural, as anyone who walks round with their eyes open can see. But 'multiculturalism' is a different thing altogether.
It's a philosophy of allowing - even encouraging - different ethnic groups to live separately in our towns and cities. It encourages the growth of monocultural areas over integration - and it is profoundly dangerous.
Yes, Suella Braverman's and Rishi Sunak's parents came here from other countries, but like my mum and dad they didn't want their new lives to be corralled in smaller versions of where they came from.
I'm sure my parents - and the Home Secretary and Rishi Sunak's parents - would have wanted no part in multiculturalism. They engaged with British society on its terms, they soaked up British traditions and lived British lifestyles. They encouraged their children to study hard, work hard and succeed.
All our stories are the very antithesis of multiculturalism, which for nearly 50 years has dictated that immigrant communities should be supported in maintaining their own culture and identities.
The creeping, insidious result of all this has been that Britishness has become a dirty word.
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